Battlefield: The Mall
A deserted shopping mall becomes the setting for a duel
By Mongoose750 (mongoose750@yahoo.com)
[I got the inspiration for this story from an old Frozen Ducks video I ran across. I hope you enjoy it.]
The mall was empty; as well it should be on a Sunday afternoon after six o’clock. The stores were closed, the shoppers had left, and the workers finished keeping track of their sales for the day. They put things up, locked their doors, and departed for the evening. The mall security guard strolled through the mall, checking doors, scanning for lost kids and stragglers, and making sure everything was in place. Then the security guard walked back to his office, and settled down for an eight-hour nap. For nothing went on during this time at the mall.
But on this night, he was wrong.
On the third floor of the mall was the “garden court,” a small area where small restaurants, mainly fast food, and lots of greenery adorned the spot. Chairs, tables, and benches were scattered throughout the court, so diners could look out the large windows and enjoy the scenery while they ate their overpriced burgers or other fare the mall had to offer.
At a large wooden bench secured into the concrete wall, a woman rolled out from under it. She was white, with a dark complexion, and stood about 5’7” with black shoulder-length wavy hair. She wore a green short-sleeve dress shirt, and black cargo pants.
From behind a stone corridor, almost covered by leafy plants, emerged another woman. She was white with a fairer complexion, and was the same height as the other woman, but her hair was a little shorter and straighter in a different hairstyle. This woman wore a short sleeve red dress shirt, cut a little short to show a peek at her tight midriff, and black leather pants.
Both were barefoot.
The two eyed each other warily while they walked down adjoining stairs to the second floor, where there was even more greenery. Around some people, this floor was nicknamed the “Green Hell,” because of the overabundance of small trees, bushes, and the like. This nickname was even more apparent to shoppers with allergies. The women found an area that had plenty of room to maneuver. Once they got there, the women, both skilled in tae kwon do, fell into their ready stances, and prepared themselves for battle.
The opening salvo came from the first woman, who’ll be referred to as “Green shirt,” fired a quick right side kick to the left shoulder of her opponent, who’ll be called “Red shirt.” The blow struck Red shirt like a sledgehammer. Red shirt backed up a couple of steps, then rallied with a counter kick of her own. And the duel was on. Fists were thrown, kicks were flying, and shouts of “Kai!” and “Ha!” echoed through the empty mall.
Meanwhile, back in the security guard’s office, the security guard decided to forestall his usual nap. Instead, he pulled out the recently bought season eight DVD set of 24, his favorite show. He figured he’d spend all eight hours of his shift watching his hero, Jack Bauer, save the country once again. For added effect, he turned up the volume on the DVD player that he connected to a few of the office speakers, so he could personally experience every gunshot and explosion. And why not? It’ll be more exciting than watching boring coverage of the empty corridors of the mall on the security camera, because nothing happens after closing time.
Back on the second floor, the fight was in full swing. Neither participant was gaining purchase until Green shirt did the unexpected. She lunged forward, grabbed the back of Red shirt’s head, and slammed her forehead into one of the thick solid glass windows overlooking the elevator. The blinding pain stopped Red shirt in her tracks for a moment. Still managing to remember she was in a fight, she delivered a back kick that pushed Green shirt back, keeping her at bay as she tried to gather her wits.
The duel was renewed in earnest, and then it came time for Red shirt to perform a trick of her own. She leapt forward and tackled Green shirt to the ground in an attempt to land some heavy blows of her own. However, Green shirt grabbed her arms, and threw Red shirt to the left. Next, Green shirt raised her right leg, and slammed the bare heel of her foot into the stomach of her foe.
Both shot back up on their feet, Red shirt not so crisp as before. The repeated body blows by Green shirts’ kicks, and especially having her forehead slammed against thick solid glass had wreaked their toll on the woman. As they exchanged kicks and blows once again, she realized it might be better to run and fight some other day.
During the next exchange of kicks, she jumped back and hit the elevator button. As her salvation was ascending, she used the remaining portion of her energy delivering a final salvo of blows to Green shirt. After she successfully fought her off, the elevator door opened, and she ran inside and hit the button.
What Red shirt had forgotten however, was the mall elevator was a little quirky. It worked fine, but its speed came and went as many mall patrons would mention, especially those looking for a quick descent. The general rule of thumb was it soared up, but crept down.
And this was the rule of thumb that Green shirt remembered as she strolled into the cab of the elevator toward her prey, who was still hitting the down button, practically willing it to respond. Another thing Red shirt forgot was the door took forever to close.
With a loud “Hi-Yah!”, Green shirt launched a final kick to Red shirts’ midsection. The powerful blow slammed her against the corner of the elevator; the kick made her feel like she broke in two. Her already softened abs were pulped, and her throbbing head was again slammed against the glass wall of the elevator. Everything seemed to shut down as she slowly slid to the elevator floor.
Green shirt stood there for a moment to watch her handiwork. The duel was over. Red shirt would not be getting up, much less offer any token resistance any time real soon. Without a word, she turned and strode out of the elevator. She descended the stairs to the main floor to exit via the service exit, where the security cameras were almost nonexistent. Not that she’d be worried about being seen, the security guard wouldn’t be paying attention, and there wouldn’t be any reason to review the tapes.
After all, nothing happens in the mall after it closes on a Sunday evening, right?
If you have enjoyed this story, perhaps you may want to read other stories from the Barefoot Heroines collection. There are a variety of stories to choose from. They can be found at
http://www.thevalkyrie.com/stories/mongoose/index.htm.
For comments, suggestions, or story ideas, email the author at shrewsberry@juno.com.
Copyright 2011, Barefoot Heroines, Inc.
